UK / Ireland
Scottish Venture Fund joins £9.6m round for TPP
The Scottish Venture Fund has joined a £9.6m funding round for drug development company, TPP Global Development.
Terra Firma in competition for Biffa gas unit
Terra Firma has made a bid for the landfill-gas unit of UK waste management specialist, Biffa, according to reports.
Morgan Stanley’s secondaries fund exceeds $500m target
Morgan Stanley's Global Secondary Opportunities Fund, has raised $585m, exceeding its $500m initial target.
Icera gets $45m from backers
UK mobile semiconductor chip manufacturer, Icera, has received $45m in funding from its existing backers, which include Accel Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, Atlas Venture, Balderton Capital and DFJ Esprit.
AIFM Directive: The end is nigh
European finance ministers approved the Alternative Investment Fund Managers’ (AIFM) Directive yesterday, more than a year after the controversial regulations were first proposed. Despite this long process, many of the private equity industry’s objections...
BGL agrees to cash offer for Liberty PLC
BlueGem Gamma Limited (BGL) has agreed to purchase the ordinary share capital of retailer and wholesale company, Liberty Plc.
Milbank hires Rinne for new antitrust practice in Germany
Law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy has appointed antitrust lawyer Dr Alexander Rinne as partner in its Munich office.
Willetts rejoins Bridgepoint
Adrian Willetts has rejoined the Bridgepoint group as a partner in its lower mid-market investment unit, Bridgepoint Development Capital.
Matrix Partners in Huddle series-B funding
Huddle, the London-based online workspace provider, has raised a substantial round of series-B funding from Matrix Partners and existing backer, Eden Ventures.
BC Partners wins bid to extend fund investment period
BC Partners has been granted permission to extend the investment period of its latest fund, according to reports.
Deutsche promotes Bagshaw to head of PE unit
Adam Bagshaw has reportedly been promoted to head of Deutsche Bank's private equity unit, replacing Rob Firth, who left the bank last month to join Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Permira teams up with AMEX for RBS WorldPay bid
Permira and American Express are thought to have partnered to make a bid for Royal Bank of Scotland’s payment processing business.
Energy Ventures lead NOK 170m buyout of Read Well
Energy Ventures has, alongside Viking Venture, KLP and management, wholly acquired oil & gas services provider Read Well Services (RWS), valuing the business at NOK 170m.
Call centre investments: Supporting the recovery
During the downturn, private equity firms invested defensively, particularly in the outsourced services sector. Now the economy is recovering, investors are looking to benefit from what is widely seen as a consolidating market. Mareen Goebel gives an...
NorthStar pumps £650,000 into Eutechnyx
NorthStar Equity Investors (NSEI) has invested £650,000 in Eutechnyx. The deal was carried out from the Finance for Business North East Fund.
BeCapital et al. in £5m round for Helveta
BeCapital has led a £5m round for software company Helveta, with Carbon Trust joining as a new investor.
Carey Olsen boosts team with four
Carey Olsen has bolstered its team with four hires, including specialist funds lawyer, Oliver Quarmby.
Terra Firma infuses fresh cash into EMI
EMI has confirmed it will receive a fresh cash injection from its private equity backer, Terra Firma, as it continues to fight against breaching bank covenants.
unquote" 17 May 2010
Despite plummeting stock-markets, private equity firms failed to pick up listed companies at major discounts in 2009. However, with UK markets still well below their peak, and increasingly positive news on the state of the economy, take-privates are...
CPE invests £7.5m into portfolio company Climate Energy Ltd
Climate Change Capital Private Equity (CPE) has invested a further £7.5m into its majority owned portfolio company Climate Energy, an energy efficiency services firm.
Zeus backs Electra-net acquisition
Zeus Private Equity-backed Electra-net (UK) has acquired KeTech 2As Ltd from the KeTech Group.
Midven sells Dynamic Change for c£9m
Venture capital investor, Midven, has sold Dynamic Change to Aim-listed Allocate Software, for about £9m, reaping 8x returns on the cash investment.
AlixPartners appoints two directors to London team
AlixPartners has appointed Nick Bradley and James Priestly to its London office.
Next Wave-backed TORA invests in Simply Zesty
Next Wave Partners portfolio company The Oxford Research Agency (TORA) has acquired a minority share in Irish online public relations and social media agency, Simply Zesty.